Phoenix Van Dusschoten: 2026 MX125 champion
Levin's GASGAS rider won his first senior national title in 2026.
By ROOST New Zealand desk · 17 October 2026
The 125cc class is where New Zealand's next stars usually show themselves, and in 2026 the rider who did that was Phoenix Van Dusschoten from Levin.
Riding a GASGAS, Van Dusschoten led the senior MX125 standings going into the Rotorua finale and held on to win the title with 291 points. Waipukurau's Carson Carroll (Yamaha) was second on 265 and Tauranga's Arama Te Whetu (KTM) third. Van Dusschoten won the final round too, scoring 72 points to Carroll's 69. It was his first senior national championship.
It also put him in good company. The rider who won the same class a year earlier, Hayden Draper, went straight on to win the MX2 title. GASGAS was one of three different brands to win senior titles in 2026, so the Levin teenager's success was also a win for the orange-and-red camp against Yamaha's run in the bigger classes.
With a national title already won, he's clearly one to watch.
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